Cuban Exiles Say Times Articles Are Baseless

Published: July 14, 1998

MIAMI, July 13—
The Cuban-American National Foundation today dismissed as ''baseless'' a series of articles that have appeared in The New York Times in recent days about ties between leaders of the group and a Cuban exile who has acknowledged carrying out a series of bombings in Cuba last year. The foundation said there was ''no truth to any of the allegations made in the story.''

At a news conference here this afternoon at which he was flanked by leaders of the organization, Jorge Mas Jr., a son of the late founder of the group, described the articles as part of an effort to weaken the foundation in order to end the American economic embargo against Cuba. He also questioned whether an interview with the exile commando leader, Luis Posada Carriles, had taken place at all.

In an interview with a Spanish-language television station in Miami today that was later broadcast at the news conference, Mr. Posada confirmed that he had talked with The Times about his relationship with the foundation and its leaders. But he denied that foundation leaders had ever supported him financially or that he served as the armed wing of the movement.

The Times article said that Mr. Posada agreed to about six hours of tape-recorded interviews in which he said his efforts were supported financially for more than a decade by leaders of the foundation.

''I don't represent the armed wing of any exile organization and I don't belong to the foundation,'' he said in the television interview. ''I am an independent man, which is why I call myself Solo.'' He added, ''I make a living from my work, from the sale of my paintings and my books.''